


Push and Pull

by Itscalledthedistrict



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Communication, Future Fic, Healthy Relationships, Insecurity, M/M, Post-Season/Series 02, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-04
Updated: 2018-03-04
Packaged: 2019-03-27 01:53:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13870611
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Itscalledthedistrict/pseuds/Itscalledthedistrict
Summary: Keith exhaled and shut his eyes. Too much had happened within the past couple of days. Somehow Shiro from the past, from the time they couldn’t find him and had no idea what had happened, that Shiro was here. He said the last thing he remembered was trying to take down Zarkon’s Robeast… to Keith, that was almost ten years ago. Before the Blade, before the Black Lion, before… before everything.Including his marriage to Lance.





	Push and Pull

Over time, Keith started to appreciate the shower more and more. It was the only place he ever felt alone with his thoughts. He didn’t miss his shack, nor being isolated all the time, but sometimes it was overwhelming to be around everyone so often. The castle wasn’t small, no, but it definitely wasn’t large enough for everyone to have their own space.

Keith exhaled and shut his eyes. Too much had happened within the past couple of days. Somehow Shiro from the _past_ , from the time they couldn’t find him and had no idea what had happened, _that_ Shiro was here. He said the last thing he remembered was trying to take down Zarkon’s Robeast… to Keith, that was almost ten years ago. Before the Blade, before the Black Lion, before… before everything. Times were simpler then. Allura had warned them about time travel. If Shiro figured out _anything_ that would allow him to predict the future, things could get messy. The future could be altered in ways they couldn’t fathom. To prevent this the team decided to hide anything significant from the past ten years. Hunk took all their photos and put them in a locked drawer. Pidge alerted Matt that he couldn’t come to the castle until they sorted this mess out. Allura avoided the past Shiro as much as she could.

Allura… Keith felt bad for her. The castle didn’t have many baggy clothes she could wear. All her clothing proudly showed off her growing stomach. Allura was already suffering through her pregnancy without her husband. Keith couldn’t imagine the stress this brought onto her as well.

The door to the bathroom opened and shut. Keith could hear someone moving around and grumbling to themselves. “Keith, why do you always take so long in the shower?”

“Shut up,” Keith simply responded. He heard more shuffling and grumbling and opened his eyes. Through the translucent walls of the shower he could see tanned fingers scratching at the undercut he had grown fond of. “What are you doing?”

“Well, no thanks to _you_ , I can’t find my headphones. I thought I left them in here but-”

“You thought you left your headphones in the bathroom?”

“You have no right to judge, Mullet.”

Keith rolled his eyes. “If you wanted to join me all you had to do was say so.”

“Well now that you’ve said it.”

Keith shut his eyes again and heard more rustling. The shower door opened and brought in a cold breeze that left all the same. Cold hands brushed Keith’s long hair to one shoulder and soft lips kissed the side of his neck. “You can’t stay in here forever you know,” a soft voice said. Keith hummed in acknowledgement but was more focused on the hand brushing up and down his back. “Quiznack, you’ve been in here for fifteen minutes and you haven’t even exfoliated yet.”

“Still don’t think you’re using that right.”

“Whatever. Give me the body wash.” Keith passed it to him without any argument. He lathered his hands with soap and scrubbed Keith’s back. “You aren’t telling me something,” he observed.

“I have nothing to hide,” Keith deflected.

“No, maybe not, but you’ve been,” he tried to search for the right word, “distant lately. Younger Shiro is worried I think.”

“He doesn’t know anything about me.”

“Hey, you’re still _Keith_ and he’s still _Shiro_. There isn’t a timeline where you two can hide something from the each other.”

“Lance-”

“I know, okay?” Lance said softly, “I know you’re scared that something will change. I’m terrified that I’m going to blab about something this Shiro doesn’t know about. That doesn’t mean everyone can avoid him. We should be helping him adjust and be comfortable, not only talking to him when it pertains to sending him home.”

“I do talk to him.”

“Yeah, about combat and Black. He’s still your brother Keith. You can trust him.” Keith didn’t say anything, but Lance felt his shoulders drop in defeat. “While we’re on that topic, you can stop pretending to hate me while he’s in the room.”

“I don’t do that,” Keith protested.

Lance snorted, “Keith, I love you, and because I love you I know when you’re pushing me away. Every time I walk into the room you walk to the other side.” He put the soap down and rested his chin on Keith’s shoulder, one hand coming up to trace the scars along his ribs. “I’m not mad, and again I _get it_ , okay? I just… I miss you and you’re standing right there. It’s like we’re fighting but we aren’t. I don’t like it.”

Keith turns but doesn’t look at Lance’s face. His eyes fall on the dark red ink that decorates Lance’s left pectoral. He lifts a hand and traces the symbol he’s become all too familiar with. “I’m sorry,” he begins, “I’m trying to remember how we were back then. You were a lot more immature.” Keith smiled when Lance rolled his eyes. “I don’t mean to push you away, but if that’s what I have to do to keep you so be it.” Keith finally looked up at his partner’s face but found Lance’s face unreadable. Even after all their years together there were times Keith couldn’t tell what Lance was thinking. “Please tell me what you’re thinking.”

“I still don’t understand why us sleeping in different rooms is going to help this.”

“If Shiro saw us coming out of the same bedroom we’d be done for, you-”

“Yes I know that but dammit Keith,” Lance let out a shaky breath.

“You’ve been having nightmares again,” Keith finished.

“I know we need to be careful and I know you think pushing people away will solve all your problems. We need you though, Keith. Allura is scared and alone since Shiro- our Shiro- and Lotor went on their mission. Young Shiro doesn’t recognise anyone here and needs as much familiarity as he can get. Pidge and Hunk need your knowledge about Galra tech. And I,” Lance brushed the long hair out of Keith’s face, “I need my husband. I need to know he’s okay and he’s not doing the stupid things he did as a teen. I need him to tell me everything is going to be okay and that we’re fine. I don’t care if you pretend to hate me in front of Young Shiro, but this can’t go on twenty-four seven anymore.”

Once, Keith and Lance had a huge fight about Keith not turning down a man who was clearly flirting with him. Keith didn’t see what the big deal was: he was wearing his wedding ring, wasn’t responding to the man’s flirtatious lines, and removed the man’s hands when he tried to grab his arm. Lance stormed over when the man tried to put his hands on Keith again and proclaimed they were leaving. Lance had screamed at him if he wasn’t so _passive_ and _distant_ he would’ve realised the man had been hitting on him since they landed on that freaking planet. Keith screamed back if Lance trusted him at all he wouldn’t be saying any of that stuff and would realise Keith had no intentions with that guy. Needless to say it wasn’t pretty. It took Keith a couple of days to realise that this had nothing to do with Lance’s trust in him- it was about his self esteem. Lance had probably spiraled and thought Keith found someone else. In the same amount of time Lance realised Keith probably didn’t want to lose his temper with the man. They talked about it and were able to become stronger.

Keith recognised that this is what’s at play here. Keith is becoming distant so he doesn’t say anything that could get them in trouble and Lance was getting hurt because of it. He traced the scar on Lance’s temple, then the one that went across his collarbone. “I’m sorry,” he repeats, “I don’t mean to. I’ll try to be better about it.”

“Thank you,” Lance replied, “now turn around so I can wash your hair.”

“Don’t I get to scrub your back?” Keith joked.

“Nah, I took a shower earlier. I only came in here so I could get you to stop thinking for a while.”

Keith turned around before Lance could see the smile gracing his lips.

* * *

Later, Keith did talk to Shiro. He answered his questions and showed him around the modified training deck. They even sparred a little. Keith would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy his time with the younger Paladin.

Keith went into the locker room and stripped off his shirt when someone entered.

“Hey Keith I can’t find-” Keith whipped around and was face to face with Young Shiro. He noticed Shiro’s eyes dart to his chest, then back up. It took Keith a moment to remember what Shiro was staring at. When he did, he stopped breathing.

Shiro was staring at the symbol of the Blue Paladin, which was etched in blue ink on Keith’s left pectoral.

**Author's Note:**

> Keith and Lance designs are inspired by [Kessandra](http://kessandras-art.tumblr.com/post/165133221684/older-space-ranger-partnersss-fixed-up-this) on Tumblr and the tattoos idea is from [this](https://archiveofourown.org/works/8667625) wonderful fic.


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